US senators want cloned meat labelled

A bill pending in the California Legislature demands that steaks, pork chops,
milk and other products from cloned livestock is to clearly labelled when they
enter the stores.

The bill introduced in Congress by Senator Barbara
Mikulski would require cloned meat or milk products to carry a label reading:
"This product is from a cloned animal or its progeny." State Senator Carole
Migden said consumers have the right to know what they're buying and to be able
to decide if they want to eat food from cloned animals. That is especially true
because the long-term consequences of eating artificially produced animals is
still not known, she said.

Consumers reactionMigden
pointed to recent polls she said suggest the FDA's ruling on cloned food could
be influential with consumers. A Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology survey
found that 64% of respondents were sceptical about animal cloning. But a
University of Maryland poll found that the same percentage said they would buy,
or consider buying, such food if the government said it was safe. The California
Cattlemen's Association and other industry groups however, are against the
legislation.